Munich - April 9, 2013... The BMW Group sold more vehicles in March than in any other month in its history. The company sold a total of 191,269 BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce vehicles in the past month, exceeding the previous all-time high in March last year (185,741 units/+3.0%). The company also achieved a new high for the first three months: Retail volumes for the year to the end of March increased by 5.3% to 448,200 units (prev. yr. 425,543 units).

Ian Robertson, Member of the Board of Management, Sales and Marketing BMW: “The BMW Group achieved an all-time high in sales last month and the best first quarter in its history, despite the headwinds present in Europe. Sales of the BMW 3 Series have contributed strongly to that growth and we will soon be expanding our highly successful 3 Series range with the BMW 3 Series Gran Turismo. All in all, we are aiming for further growth in BMW Group worldwide sales in 2013.”

With worldwide sales of 159,195 vehicles (prev. yr.: 153,016/+4.0%) in March, more BMW brand vehicles were sold in a single month than ever before. Sales for the year to the end of March reached a record 381,404 vehicles (prev. yr. 356,562), an increase of 7.0% over the first three months of last year. The BMW 3 Series had an excellent first quarter with 109,279 vehicles delivered (prev. yr. 91,138/+19.9%). Growth in the first quarter was also driven by the BMW X1, with sales climbing 27.6% to 37,680 vehicles (prev. yr. 29,535). Sales of the BMW X3 and BMW X5 continued to be solid through to the end of March with 36,189 (prev. yr. 35,249/+2.7%)and 27,274 (prev. yr. 26,563/+2.7%) vehicles sold respectively. Sales of the BMW 6 Series increased by 32.7% to 6,174 vehicles compared with 4,651 last year.

A total of 31,763 MINI brand vehicles were delivered worldwide to customers in March (prev. yr. 32,422/-2.0%) and 66,154 (prev. yr. 68,211/-3.0%) vehicles were sold in the first quarter of 2013. The slight decrease in the first quarter is attributed to the four-week closure of the MINI Oxford plant for renovations at the beginning of the year. The all-new MINI Paceman, which was launched last month, is expected to boost momentum in global sales for the brand.

Rolls-Royce: Following record figures in 2012, Rolls-Royce motor cars delivered to customers in the first quarter were -16.6% (642) compared to the previous year. This is within the company’s planning cycle, as the manufacturing plant underwent rebalancing and preparations for the start of production of the new Rolls-Royce Wraith. Sales in March showed an increase of 2.6% (311) compared to the same period in 2012, underlining the company’s cautious optimism for another strong year in 2013.

BMW Motorrad exceeded the previous year’s figures in the first three months of the year, thus achieving the best first quarter result in its history. Sales rose 1.5% to 24,732 vehicles (prev. yr. 24,373). A total of 13,067 BMW motorcycles were delivered in March – an increase of 6.3% on the previous year (12,295).

The BMW Group made gains in many markets in the first three months. Solid first quarters in both the U.S. and China contributed to the increase in BMW Group worldwide sales. In the U.S., a record 78,957 vehicles were delivered, an increase of 4.3% over the same period in 2012 (75,729). From January to the end of March a record total of 86,070 vehicles were delivered to customers in Mainland China, an increase of 7.6% compared with the same period last year (prev. yr. 80,014). Other Asian markets, such as Japan (14,990/+7.2%) and South Korea (8,900/+16.9%) also reported solid gains in the first three months of the year. Strong growth was also reported by the Middle East markets, with 6,303 vehicles delivered (prev. yr. 4,936/+27.7%).

In the company’s home market of Germany, a total of 63,675 BMW Group vehicles were registered (prev. yr. 66,214/-3.8%) in the first quarter. Despite the headwinds in the market, the company managed to gain segment share and now leads the premium segment in Germany. In Russia, sales jumped by 21.1% in the first three months to a total of 9,377 vehicles (prev. yr. 7,743). In the whole region of Europe, the company reported a slight increase, with 207,128 vehicles sold in the period (prev. yr. 200,954/+3.1%).

BMW is diluting the product by making it cheaper and affordable and greatly compromising the retail value. Also the after sales service has suffered in terms of quality and honouring warranty claims. Dealers in Australia are complaining BMW AG is not responding to queries while after sales bulletins are no longer centrally communicated. Pathetic, and all in the name of remaining the no.1 luxury car brand in the world. Do I care, no. But I do care when the service quality suffers.